“Nope. No way.” He interrupted, his face firm. “If she had contacted me and wanted to talk, then I might have been comfortable having a cup of coffee with her, but I have no desire to have dinner with anyone other than you. Plus, it would have felt disrespectful to you.”
Rachel stared up at him. His hair was damp with sweat, his face flushed from exertion, and when he smiled at her, she felt her heart turn over in her chest.
“You mentioned having a bad day?” he said, his arms giving a little squeeze around her.
“I needed to see you,” Rachel admitted.
Jack's expression shifted immediately, concern flooding his features. “What happened?”
Rachel told him about David's visit, about the confrontation, about the way he'd gotten defensive and angry. Jack listened without interrupting, his jaw getting tighter with every word.
“He threatened you,” Jack said when she finished. His voice was low and dangerous.
“No, he didn’t. He was angry about not getting his way,” Rachel said, but even as she said it, she knew it was more than that. “I’ve never seen him that way. He’s always been laid back.”
Jack was quiet for a long moment, staring out at the field where the kids had now packed up their gear and headed up to the locker rooms. “I didn’t tell you, but when I searched the locker room the other day, I found two pills under a locker near where Robbie was hiding. They’ve been sent to the state lab.”
“Oh shit.” Rachel leaned her head against his shoulder. “What a mess.”
Jack's arm came around her shoulders, pulling her close. Rachel closed her eyes and breathed in his smell. Sweat and grass and something that was just Jack. “When he was in my classroom… for a second…I felt like I was back there with Isaiah. Trapped and powerless,” she admitted quietly.
Jack's arm tightened around her. “You're not powerless, Rach. And you're not alone.”
“I know.” Rachel lifted her head to look at him. “That's the difference this time. I know I'm not alone. And I have much more confidence.”
They stood there for a while longer, and eventually, the field cleared out completely. “Come on,” he said. “Let's go home.”
Home. The word settled warm in Rachel's chest. She took his hand and linked fingers with him.
They drove separately back to her apartment, and when they got inside, Rachel dropped her bag by the door and turned to Jack. He was watching her with an intensity that made her breath catch.
“I need you,” she said simply.
Jack closed the distance between them in two strides and kissed her. Not gentle, not careful, but with a hunger that matched her own. Rachel's hands went to his shirt, tugging it up and over his head, and Jack's fingers found the buttons of her blouse.
They made it as far as the couch before they couldn't wait any longer. Jack pulled Rachel onto his lap, and she straddled him, her skirt riding up around her hips. His hands moved everywhere… her back, her ass, then tangled in her hair. Rachel lost herself in the feeling of him.
They were two adults who knew exactly what they wanted, who'd been apart too long, who needed this connection like they needed air.
Jack's mouth moved from her lips to her neck, and Rachel gasped, her fingers digging into his shoulders. “Bedroom,” she managed.
“Too far,” Jack growled against her skin. They stayed on the couch, moving together with an urgency that bordered on desperate.
He moved his hand from her hips to grasp the material of her shirt. Sliding her blouse off slowly, she fought the urge to hurry, knowing she wanted to take her time to savor every moment.
Her breasts spilled out of the top of her bra, and he trailed his lips from hers, kissing his way torturously down her neck into her cleavage. Her skin warmed as his lips moved over her breasts. Unfastening her bra, he peeled it away, and it joined her shirt as it was tossed to the floor.
Unfortunately, her skirt was now twisted above her hips, and while his erection was pressing against her panties through his pants, she couldn’t dismiss the feeling of too many clothes being in the way.
With her hand against his shoulders, she pressed back and slipped off his lap. “Seriously, Jack. I want the bed so we can have room to do everything we want to do!”
He must not have had any argument because he took to his feet instantly, swooped her into his arms, and carried her gently into her bedroom. The bed was only a double, but they would fit better than on the small sofa. Her body slid down his front until her feet rested on the rug.
She shimmied out of her skirt, kicked off her shoes, and slipped her panties off. Jack stood rooted to the spot.
Without speaking, she leaned up, kissed the corner of his mouth before dropping to her knees. She unzipped his pants and pushed them down his legs along with his boxers, before taking him into her mouth.
His head dropped back as his fingers threaded through her hair. “Christ, Rachel,” he moaned, then looked down. He was gentle as he thrust into her mouth, and she grinned as she peered up at him.
